Spatio-temporal patterns of the European wildcat in a Mediterranean coastal area

Like most small felids, the European wildcat Felis silvestris is a rather elusive species, poorly detectable in the wild, due to several aspects of its biology. Camera trapping can represent a suitable tool to understand temporal activity patterns and habitat preferences of such elusive species. We used intensive camera trapping over two full years to investigate spatio-temporal patterns of the wildcat in a Mediterranean coastal protected area (Maremma Regional Park, central Italy). At the seasonal scale, the wildcat showed a marked twilight activity in summer and winter (mating period), and nocturnal activity in autumn. Conversely, a peak of activity during the day, i.e., in broad daylight, was reported in spring. Reproductive females may limit their nocturnal movements in spring to increase protection from predators to their kittens at the den, although further data are required to support this conclusion. At seasonal, semestral, and yearly temporal scales, the frequency of wildcat detections increased along with availability of shrubwood. These results emphasise the importance for this small felid of areas with dense vegetation cover (Mediterranean maquis and shrubwood, in our study area). Areas densely covered with shrubby vegetation are expected to provide benefits to this elusive small cat in terms of reduced human disturbance (included tourists), availability of prey (e.g., small mammals), as well as shelter, essential to ensure protection towards potential larger predators

Alien shades of grey: New occurrences and relevant spread of Sciurus carolinensis in Italy

The eastern grey squirrel is listed among the worst invasive species throughout the world. This species of American origin is currently replacing the native Eurasian red squirrel in most of the Great Britain, as well as in parts of Ireland and Italy. It may debark trees and exert damages to woodlands and tree plantations. Therefore, its spread may be deleterious for biodiversity and environment, emphasising the need for a rapid detection in new areas of occurrence. In this work, we reported for the first time, the presence of new populations of this invasive species in Tuscany (Central Italy) and some updates and analyses regarding the status of this species in Veneto (North-Eastern Italy). Occurrences were collected through citizen-science contributory approach supported by photos, road-kills, and/or hair-tube sampling. Field investigations ad hoc were carried out in Veneto and Tuscany   to confirm the repeated reports in the surroundings of Arezzo and in the province of Siena. Although records can be possibly related to erratic or single individuals escaped from captivity, reproductive nuclei have also been detected in both regions, with the observations of juveniles and/or lactating females. The occurrence of the  species in these regions is still scarce and localised, but considering the surrounding favourable wooded habitats, a rapid removal of the animals would be required to prevent their spread

The rhythm of the night: patterns of~activity of the European wildcat in the Italian peninsula

The European wildcat is a threatened carnivore, whose ecology is still scarcely studied, especially in Mediterranean areas. In this study, we estimated activity rhythm patterns of this felid, by means of camera-trapping at three spatial scales: (i) whole country (Italy); (ii) biogeographical areas; (iii) latitudinal zones. The activity rhythms patterns were also calculated according to temporal scales: (1) warm semester; (2) cold semester and (3) seasonal scales. Lastly, we also tested whether the effect of moon phases affected the wildcat activity. We conducted the analysis on a total of 975 independent events collected in 2009-2021, from 285 locations, in 65,800 camera days. We showed that the wildcat in Italy exhibits a > 70% nocturnal behaviour, with 20% of diurnal activity, at all spatial scales, and throughout the whole year, with peaks at 10.00 p.m. and 04.00 a.m. We observed a high overlap of wildcat activity rhythms between different biogeographical and latitudinal zones. The wildcat was mainly active on the darkest nights, reducing its activity in bright moonlight nights. Diurnal activity was greater in the warm months and decreased with the distance from shrubs and woodlands, most likely according to activity rhythms of its main prey, water presence in summer, the care of offspring and the availability of shelter sites. Conversely, the distance to paved roads seems to have no significant effects on diurnal activity, suggesting that, in presence of natural shelters, the wildcat probably may tolerate these infrastructures. We suggested limited plasticity in activity rhythm patterns of the wildcat, emphasizing the importance of dark hours for this species

Citizen Science Terminology Matters: Exploring Key Terms

Much can be at stake depending on the choice of words used to describe citizen science, because terminology impacts how knowledge is developed. Citizen science is a quickly evolving field that is mobilizing people’s involvement in information development, social action and justice, and large-scale information gathering. Currently, a wide variety of terms and expressions are being used to refer to the concept of ‘citizen science’ and its practitioners. Here, we explore these terms to help provide guidance for the future growth of this field. We do this by reviewing the theoretical, historical, geopolitical, and disciplinary context of citizen science terminology; discussing what citizen science is and reviewing related terms; and providing a collection of potential terms and definitions for ‘citizen science’ and people participating in citizen science projects. This collection of terms was generated primarily from the broad knowledge base and on-the-ground experience of the authors, by recognizing the potential issues associated with various terms. While our examples may not be systematic or exhaustive, they are intended to be suggestive and invitational of future consideration. In our collective experience with citizen science projects, no single term is appropriate for all contexts. In a given citizen science project, we suggest that terms should be chosen carefully and their usage explained; direct communication with participants about how terminology affects them and what they would prefer to be called also should occur. We further recommend that a more systematic study of terminology trends in citizen science be conducted

Contours of citizen science: a vignette study

Citizen science has expanded rapidly over the past decades. Yet, defining citizen science and its boundaries remained a challenge, and this is reflected in the literature-for example in the proliferation of typologies and definitions. There is a need for identifying areas of agreement and disagreement within the citizen science practitioners community on what should be considered as citizen science activity. This paper describes the development and results of a survey that examined this issue, through the use of vignettes-short case descriptions that describe an activity, while asking the respondents to rate the activity on a scale from 'not citizen science' (0%) to 'citizen science' (100%). The survey included 50 vignettes, of which five were developed as clear cases of not-citizen science activities, five as widely accepted citizen science activities and the others addressing 10 factors and 61 sub-factors that can lead to controversy about an activity. The survey has attracted 333 respondents, who provided over 5100 ratings. The analysis demonstrates the plurality of understanding of what citizen science is and calls for an open understanding of what activities are included in the field

Hotspots in the grid: Avian sensitivity and vulnerability to collision risk from energy infrastructure interactions in Europe and North Africa

Wind turbines and power lines can cause bird mortality due to collision or electrocution. The biodiversity impacts of energy infrastructure (EI) can be minimised through effective landscape-scale planning and mitigation. The identification of high-vulnerability areas is urgently needed to assess potential cumulative impacts of EI while supporting the transition to zero carbon energy. We collected GPS location data from 1,454 birds from 27 species susceptible to collision within Europe and North Africa and identified areas where tracked birds are most at risk of colliding with existing EI. Sensitivity to EI development was estimated for wind turbines and power lines by calculating the proportion of GPS flight locations at heights where birds were at risk of collision and accounting for species' specific susceptibility to collision. We mapped the maximum collision sensitivity value obtained across all species, in each 5 × 5 km grid cell, across Europe and North Africa. Vulnerability to collision was obtained by overlaying the sensitivity surfaces with density of wind turbines and transmission power lines. Results: Exposure to risk varied across the 27 species, with some species flying consistently at heights where they risk collision. For areas with sufficient tracking data within Europe and North Africa, 13.6% of the area was classified as high sensitivity to wind turbines and 9.4% was classified as high sensitivity to transmission power lines. Sensitive areas were concentrated within important migratory corridors and along coastlines. Hotspots of vulnerability to collision with wind turbines and transmission power lines (2018 data) were scattered across the study region with highest concentrations occurring in central Europe, near the strait of Gibraltar and the Bosporus in Turkey. Synthesis and applications. We identify the areas of Europe and North Africa that are most sensitive for the specific populations of birds for which sufficient GPS tracking data at high spatial resolution were available. We also map vulnerability hotspots where mitigation at existing EI should be prioritised to reduce collision risks. As tracking data availability improves our method could be applied to more species and areas to help reduce bird-EI conflicts

Survival and cause-specific mortality of European wildcat (Felis silvestris) across Europe

Humans have transformed most landscapes across the globe, forcing other species to adapt in order to persist in increasingly anthropogenic landscapes. Wide-ranging solitary species, such as wild felids, struggle particularly in such landscapes. Conservation planning and management for their long-term persistence critically depends on understanding what determine survival and what are the main mortality risks. We carried out the first study on annual survival and cause-specific mortality of the European wildcat with a large and unique dataset of 211 tracked individuals from 22 study areas across Europe. Furthermore, we tested the effect of environmental and human disturbance variables on the survival probability. Our results show that mortalities were mainly human-caused, with roadkill and poaching representing 57% and 22% of the total annual mortality, respectively. The annual survival probability of wildcat was 0.92 (95% CI = 0.87–0.98) for females and 0.84 (95% CI = 0.75–0.94) for males. Road density strongly impacted wildcat annual survival, whereby an increase in the road density of motorways and primary roads by 1 km/km2 in wildcat home-ranges increased mortality risk ninefold. Low-traffic roads, such as secondary and tertiary roads, did not significantly affect wildcat's annual survival. Our results deliver key input parameters for population viability analyses, provide planning-relevant information to maintain subcritical road densities in key wildcat habitats, and identify conditions under which wildcat-proof fences and wildlife crossing structures should be installed to decrease wildcat mortality.This research was funded by: the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) as part of the mFund project “WilDa—Dynamic Wildlife–Vehicle Collision warning, using heterogeneous traffic, accident and environmental data as well as big data concepts” grant number 19F2014B; the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) Research Grants, Short-Term Grants, 2020 (57507441); the Deutsche Wildtier Stiftung (DeWiSt). The data from Cabañeros National Park were collected in the frame of the project OAPN 352/2011 funded by Organismo Autónomo Parques Nacionales. MM was supported by a research contract Ramón y Cajal from the MINECO (RYC-2015-19231). FDR was supported by a postdoctoral contract funded by the University of Málaga through the grants program “Ayudas para la Incorporación de Doctores del I Plan Propio de Investigación de la Universidad de Málaga (Call 2019)”. PM was supported by UIDB/50027/2020 with funding from FCT/MCTES through national funds.Peer reviewe

A common statement on anthropogenic hybridization of the European wildcat (Felis silvestris)

Preserving natural genetic diversity and ecological function of wild species is a central goal in conservation biology. As such, anthropogenic hybridization is considered a threat to wild populations, as it can lead to changes in the genetic makeup of wild species and even to the extinction of wild genomes. In European wildcats, the genetic and ecological impacts of gene flow from domestic cats are mostly unknown at the species scale. However, in small and isolated populations, it is known to include genetic swamping of wild genomes. In this context, it is crucial to better understand the dynamics of hybridization across the species range, to inform and implement management measures that maintain the genetic diversity and integrity of the European wildcat. In the present paper, we aim to provide an overview of the current scientific understanding of anthropogenic hybridization in European wildcats, to clarify important aspects regarding the evaluation of hybridization given the available methodologies, and to propose guidelines for management and research priorities